In Windows App on MacOS, I can't set "clipboard mode" to bidirectional

Question

In Windows App on MacOS, I can't set "clipboard mode" to bidirectional

Kyle Baley 10

When I select "bidirectional" for clipboard mode in Windows App (latest version as of October 9) and press Save, it reverts to the previous value I had selected.

Jennifer 0 Reputation points

2024-11-14T20:50:21.2366667+00:00
I have the same issue. I was able to select anything BUT bidirectional. I was able to force it by doing the following:

Steps

Export the RDP settings to your computer

Select the connection in the devices window

In the Windows App menu bar, select Connections > Export to RDP file...

Open the exported RDP file in a text editor. I used Brackets

Change redirectclipboard:i:0 to redirectclipboard:i:1

Save the RDP file

Import the RDP file back into Windows App

However, when I tested the connection after making this change, it would not connect even though it connects fine with clipboard set to any other option.

I have three other devices that have bidirectional set, and those work without issue.
Jennifer 0 Reputation points

2024-11-14T20:55:30.7966667+00:00

I should also add that I did a diff on the RDP export from a device that works, and the one that does not. The only differences are the IP, and username.
Jennifer 0 Reputation points

2024-11-14T21:00:19.58+00:00

I was able to fix mine by duplicating a device that works properly, then changing only the IP address and the user. Now it works properly.

4 answers

Your answer

Jennifer 0 Reputation points

2024-11-14T20:50:21.2366667+00:00

I have the same issue. I was able to select anything BUT bidirectional. I was able to force it by doing the following:

Steps

Export the RDP settings to your computer

Select the connection in the devices window

In the Windows App menu bar, select Connections > Export to RDP file...

Open the exported RDP file in a text editor. I used Brackets

Change redirectclipboard:i:0 to redirectclipboard:i:1

Save the RDP file

Import the RDP file back into Windows App

However, when I tested the connection after making this change, it would not connect even though it connects fine with clipboard set to any other option.

I have three other devices that have bidirectional set, and those work without issue.
Jennifer 0 Reputation points

2024-11-14T20:55:30.7966667+00:00

I should also add that I did a diff on the RDP export from a device that works, and the one that does not. The only differences are the IP, and username.
Jennifer 0 Reputation points

2024-11-14T21:00:19.58+00:00

I was able to fix mine by duplicating a device that works properly, then changing only the IP address and the user. Now it works properly.

Answer 1

Kyle Baley 10

This seems to be fixed in version 11.0.6 in the App Store. The release notes explicitly call out that it's fixed as well:

Fixed a UI bug that prevented clipboard redirection settings from being changed

Answer 2

Hello Kyle Baley,

Thank you for posting in Q&A forum.

Here are the suggestions you can try.

Ensure that the Windows App has the necessary permissions to access the clipboard on your macOS. Go to System Preferences > Security & Privacy > Privacy tab > Accessibility and Full Disk Access, and make sure the Windows App is listed and checked.
Sometimes, resetting the app preferences can resolve configuration issues. You can try deleting the app's preference files and then reconfiguring the settings.
Uninstall the Windows App and then reinstall it. This can sometimes resolve issues caused by corrupted files.

I hope the information above is helpful.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to let us know.

Best Regards,

Daisy Zhou

============================================

If the Answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and upvote it.

Answer 3

Hi Daisy,Thank you for the suggestions. I tried all of them (for anyone reading, don't forget that deleting app preferences will remove all saved VMs so you'll need to recreate them) and the problem persists. For details about your suggestions:

Windows App did NOT have full disk access so I had to turn this on
I deleted all of my preferences in ~/Library/Preferences and the cache in ~/Library/Containers
I uninstalled and reinstalled the app. I currently have version 11.0.5 (2401)

I found someone else that seems to be having a similar problem. Right now, I can set the clipboard mode to any value EXCEPT bidirectional and it will save the value and work as expected.

Answer 4

I tried a few things (in comments above), but was unsucessful. What did fix is for me was to duplicate another device that was working properly, then update the IP address and the username on the copied instance. Now it works properly and I confirmed I can copy/paste between the remote and host both ways. This solution obviously won't work if there are no other devices to copy from. But perhaps creating a connection to a different device, testing functionality, and if it works, then make a duplicate?

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In Windows App on MacOS, I can't set "clipboard mode" to bidirectional

4 answers

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